Film Preview: San Andreas (2015)

Poster

Poster #1

Additional posters can be found below.

Trailer Link

Release Date:

May 29, 2015

Synopsis:

From IMDb: “In the aftermath of a massive earthquake in California, a rescue-chopper pilot makes a dangerous journey across the state in order to rescue his estranged daughter.”

Poster: C+ / B- / B / C+

Review: (#1) A destructive teaser that may be sufficient for fans of destruction, but the impetus to see the film just isn’t there for anyone else. (#2) In the same vein as the prior entry, but a little more action oriented and more creatively exciting.

(#3) The deep crevasse isn’t original, but it’s effective. This is the best design they’ve implemented so far, but it’s far from being perfect. (#4) This design at least sell Dwayne Johnson’s involvement while softly reminding the audience this is a disaster film. That effect doesn’t make it seem nearly as exciting as they hope.

Trailer: C+ / B / B

Review: (#1) As much as I love a good disaster flick, the initial data seems to suggest that this is just the Dwayne Johnson Show and while the trailer suggests there may be other human turmoil, I fear it will be of little importance to the spectacle of it all.

(#2) While the film still looks like an expensively mounted, thematically cheap disaster flick, there’s a lot of terrific effects in the trailer, which should make the film a hit. The big problem continues to be the cheesy narrative at play in the trailer, which keeps the film looking less exciting than a Roland Emmerich pic.

(#3) Displaying more of the rampant destruction in the trailer is a positive first step. However, the producers seem to be countering that with an equally lifeless depiction of the film’s plot that’s too loosely written just to accentuate the destruction.

Oscar Prospects:

An early Summer blockbuster (maybe) could be a good target for Oscar nominations. However, disaster films haven’t necessarily done well in recent years with the Academy, though this one has enough destructive power to give it an advantage.